Spectrum (Stone Society #14) - Faith Gibson Page 0,40

we have… I actually don’t know what all is here. Let me look.” Stella perused the cabinet where Zeke’s liquor was stored. She rattled off the various kinds of alcohol available, and Thomas opted for Scotch. After pouring a generous amount into a glass and handing it over, Stella found her discarded coffee cup she’d dropped earlier and put it in the sink before fixing another cup. When she returned to the living room, she sat on the other end of the sofa.

“Now, how about I tell you the long version?”

Zeke hated leaving Stella for even a second, but his brother needed him. He knocked on the door. “Cyrus, it’s Zeke. I’m coming in.” He wasn’t sure what he expected to find when he entered the room, but it wasn’t Cyrus calmly sitting on the end of the bed.

“I’m sorry I had to run out on you, but Calhoun tried to take Stella.”

“Is she okay?” Cyrus asked as he extended his claws and retracted them yet as quickly.

“Yes, she is. And Calhoun’s on his way to jail. Looks like you’re getting the hang of things.” Zeke leaned against the doorframe, keeping an eye on his brother while he listened in on his mate telling Thomas all about Gargoyles and half-bloods. The fates chose well when they gave Stella to him.

Cyrus opened his mouth and extended his fangs. “I’m trying. The claws aren’t bad, but these damn teeth…” Cyrus winced when the sharp ends cut his bottom lip. He retracted them, then wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. Zeke pushed off the door and went into the bathroom for a washcloth. After wetting it with warm water, he returned and handed it to his brother. “You’ll need this for a while. What about your wings?”

Cyrus narrowed his eyes, and a few seconds later, his wings spread out behind him. Cyrus stared at his reflection in the mirror on the wall across from where he was sitting. “I can’t believe this is all real.”

“It’ll take a while to get used to it, more so having another voice in your head than the actual shifting.”

“Yeah, uh, Stella actually helped with that. She told me to talk to it… Him.”

Zeke chuckled. “It’s okay to call your beast an it. You’ll be calling it several things for a while, none of which are nice. You just can’t let it control you when it tries to take over. That’s the hardest part of being Gargoyle. Your shifter will be headstrong and combative, especially where your mate is concerned.”

Cyrus turned sad eyes to Zeke. “I probably won’t have to worry about that. I phased in front of him and yelled at him to leave. I doubt I get the chance to explain things to him.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure about that. He’s currently sitting on the sofa with Stella, and she’s explaining things from her perspective. He didn’t leave when you told him to, so that’s a good sign.”

“Really?” Cyrus turned his face toward the door, cocking his head to the side. Zeke figured his brother was listening in on the conversation taking place downstairs. “I can hear them.” Cyrus stood. “I need to go—”

Zeke held his hand out. “Hang on, Brother. I know you want to talk to him. Hold him, and claim him. Your beast is going to demand it. That’s going to be the hardest thing you’ll ever face – not claiming him immediately. But you need to be in control before you’re alone with Thomas, and that’s not going to happen quickly. I know you would never hurt your mate intentionally, but until you have some time to get used to the shifter inside, you need to keep your distance.” When Cyrus’s fangs dropped, Zeke pointed. “Case in point. You’re pissed, and you need to tamp that shit down now.”

“Sorry.” Cyrus took a step back and got his beast under control.

“I’m proud of you, Brother. You’re doing much better than I was at this point. Better than most of our siblings I helped through their transition.”

“Like I said, Stella helped. She told me to talk to my Goyle. How did she know? It’s not like she’s a shifter.”

Zeke smiled, thinking about his mate. “I may have spoken aloud to my beast in front of her. Plus, she can hear it in her head now that we’re mated.”

“Holy shit. Are you serious?”

“Yep. Not all couples have that level of bond, at least not right away. But I think me dressing down